Personal timeline

Maleficent-Park-1970's journey

Milestones, reflections, and progress updates connected as your layoff-to-next-step story unfolds.

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    Feeling Planning Thinking

    I recently had a breakthrough in my job search that I wanted to share. For a long time, I approached interviews with a mindset of overpreparation, thinking that if I scripted my answers and practiced my body language, I would impress the interviewers. However, this strategy backfired on me more often than not, leading to rejections or being ghosted after final rounds. A few months ago, I hit a wall. I was tired of the stress and pressure I was putting on myself, so I decided to change my approach. I started going into interviews feeling more relaxed and authentic. Instead of trying to deliver textbook-perfect answers, I spoke honestly about my experiences and aspirations. If I didn’t know something, I admitted it. When asked about my five-year plan, I shared my genuine thoughts rather than what I thought they wanted to hear. Surprisingly, my offer rate increased significantly after I made this shift. I realized that interviews are meant to be two-way conversations; they’re not just about the company assessing my fit, but also about me determining if the company aligns with my values and goals. I’m curious if others have had similar experiences. Has anyone else found that dropping the overly polished act has led to more success in interviews? Or has being too relaxed ever backfired? I’d love to hear about what has worked for others in today’s job market.

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  2. 1
    Feeling Planning Thinking

    I recently shifted my approach to job interviews and it has made a significant difference in my experience. For a long time, I treated interviews like a performance, rehearsing answers and trying to impress interviewers with enthusiasm for roles I didn't genuinely care about. This led to making it to final rounds but ultimately losing out on offers or accepting positions that didn't align with my goals. A few months ago, I decided to be more honest in my interviews. I started openly discussing what I was looking for in a job, my areas for improvement, and the type of work environment that allows me to thrive. I stopped pretending that every company was my dream job. Surprisingly, this change led to an increase in callbacks and offers that actually matched my preferences. I realized that interviews should be more of a two-way conversation, where both parties assess whether there's a mutual fit, rather than a one-sided effort to convince someone to hire you. It feels liberating to be authentic, and it has paid off in my job search.

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